First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Given "Buy" Rating at DA Davidson

Key Points

• DA Davidson reissued a "Buy" rating on First Watch with a $17.00 price target, implying about a 29.7% upside from the stock's current price; overall analyst consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a $19.58 consensus price target.
• The company beat quarterly EPS expectations ($0.24 vs. $0.08 estimate) while revenue was slightly under consensus at $316.35 million, though revenue was up 20.2% year‑over‑year.
• FWRG is trading around $13.11 with a market cap of ~$808 million and a P/E of 42.27; insiders have been net sellers recently and institutional ownership is very high at 96.11%.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by equities research analysts at DA Davidson in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $17.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson's price target would suggest a potential upside of 29.71% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Watch Restaurant Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays lowered their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Stephens lowered their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $19.58.

First Watch Restaurant Group Price Performance

FWRG traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.11. The stock had a trading volume of 70,605 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,675,655. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.29. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 1 year low of $10.09 and a 1 year high of $19.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $12.36 and a 200 day moving average of $15.19. The company has a market cap of $807.66 million, a P/E ratio of 42.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.98.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.16. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 3.20% and a net margin of 1.59%.The firm had revenue of $316.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $317.49 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.01 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Laura Anne Sorensen sold 4,732 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.59, for a total value of $59,575.88. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 239,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,009,639.50. This represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO H Melville Hope III sold 3,878 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total value of $48,552.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 111,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,399,573.24. The trade was a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 68,013 shares of company stock valued at $853,606 over the last 90 days. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Watch Restaurant Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FWRG. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group in the third quarter worth $20,318,000. Riverbridge Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 90.8% in the first quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 2,091,700 shares of the company's stock worth $21,921,000 after acquiring an additional 995,671 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 51.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,335,883 shares of the company's stock worth $37,468,000 after acquiring an additional 796,191 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 2,796.3% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 813,051 shares of the company's stock worth $12,716,000 after acquiring an additional 784,979 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 183.9% in the fourth quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 1,036,560 shares of the company's stock worth $15,631,000 after acquiring an additional 671,455 shares during the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc NASDAQ: FWRG operates a specialty daytime dining concept focused on breakfast, brunch and lunch. The company's casual, full-service cafés emphasize fresh ingredients, made-to-order entrées and a seasonally driven menu that ranges from omelets and Benedicts to salads, skillets and afternoon sandwiches. First Watch positions itself as a daytime-only destination, with most locations opening early morning and closing by mid-afternoon.

Founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery and John Sullivan in Pacific Grove, California, First Watch began as a single café and gradually expanded through company-owned and select franchised locations.

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